Silk Cut
Encyclopedia
Silk Cut is brand of low tar
cigarette
produced by the Gallaher Group
. The packaging is characterised by a distinctive stark white packet with the brand name in a purple, blue, red, silver, white or green square.
Tobacco
makes up 75% of the filling, the rest is Cytrel
, a cellulose-based tobacco substitute.
The brand increased in popularity around the world throughout the 1970s and 1980s as the dangers of cigarette smoking became well known and consumers switched to a lower tar brand. At 5 mg tar, Silk Cut contained less than half the tar content of stronger brands such as Benson and Hedges or Marlboro.
The brand was made popular by an advertising campaign launched in 1997, in preparation of a ban on tobacco advertising. The advertisements showed scissors cutting through purple silk with the Silk Cut logo
on it. When the ban on tobacco advertisements came into effect Silk Cut removed the logo from the advertisements and only left the purple silk. A study showed that even without the Silk Cut logo, 98% consumers associated the advertisements with Silk Cut.
Silk Cut were also the title sponsors of rugby league
's Challenge Cup
for a while and the competition was known as the 'Silk Cut Challenge Cup'. Silk Cut also sponsored the successful Jaguar XJR sportscars
that competed in World Sportscar Championship
and 24 Hours of Le Mans
race.
It is now illegal to advertise tobacco in many countries and the adverts have stopped. In the 1990s Silk Cut was the best selling brand in the UK
, but sales have declined behind cheaper budget brands as tax on tobacco has increased. In an attempt to counteract this, the manufacturers responded in the new millennium by introducing bevelled corners to redesigned regular gauge packaging, and marketing their first 'slim' cigarette in the UK, even though this wasn't the first 'slim' cigarette available in the UK as More, Karelia and Vogue are available in most tobacconists. Capri were available in the UK until the mid 1990s.
Silk Cut is also available in a lower tar version and an ultra low tar version with a tar content of only 0.1 mg. When terms such as 'light' and 'low tar' were made illegal to use in the UK for use of tobacco promotion (for fear that it deluded smokers into thinking such products were safer), some commentators predicted that Silk Cut's name and good brand-recognition as a low-tar product would favourably affect sales of the brand to health conscious consumers. Silk Cut Blue cigarettes contain 0.3mg Nicotine and Tar content is 3 mg. Silk Cut Silver cigarettes contain 0.1mg Nicotine and Tar content is 1 mg. Silk Cut White cigarettes contain 0.01mg Nicotine and Tar content is 0.5 mg. Silk Cut cigarettes are also available in a '100s' range (superking size) and in a menthol variety.
It is a misconception that the tobacco in Silk Cuts contains less nicotine than other cigarette tobacco. The lower nicotine
levels are caused by the design of the filter, which has many more holes than regular strength cigarette filters, to mix the smoke with air.
They remain a popular choice for smokers who want a lighter cigarette
Tar
Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
cigarette
Cigarette
A cigarette is a small roll of finely cut tobacco leaves wrapped in a cylinder of thin paper for smoking. The cigarette is ignited at one end and allowed to smoulder; its smoke is inhaled from the other end, which is held in or to the mouth and in some cases a cigarette holder may be used as well...
produced by the Gallaher Group
Gallaher Group
Gallaher Group is a major United Kingdom-based multinational tobacco company. It was traded on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index, prior to its April 2007 acquisition by Japan Tobacco.-History:...
. The packaging is characterised by a distinctive stark white packet with the brand name in a purple, blue, red, silver, white or green square.
Tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
makes up 75% of the filling, the rest is Cytrel
Cytrel
Cytrel is a cellulose-based tobacco substitute used in some low-tar cigarette brands, famously comprising 25% of the Silk Cut brand.Development began on a replacement for tobacco in cigarettes in the 1950s, to reduce 'undesirable tobacco smoke components' present in cigarettes...
, a cellulose-based tobacco substitute.
The brand increased in popularity around the world throughout the 1970s and 1980s as the dangers of cigarette smoking became well known and consumers switched to a lower tar brand. At 5 mg tar, Silk Cut contained less than half the tar content of stronger brands such as Benson and Hedges or Marlboro.
The brand was made popular by an advertising campaign launched in 1997, in preparation of a ban on tobacco advertising. The advertisements showed scissors cutting through purple silk with the Silk Cut logo
Logo
A logo is a graphic mark or emblem commonly used by commercial enterprises, organizations and even individuals to aid and promote instant public recognition...
on it. When the ban on tobacco advertisements came into effect Silk Cut removed the logo from the advertisements and only left the purple silk. A study showed that even without the Silk Cut logo, 98% consumers associated the advertisements with Silk Cut.
Silk Cut were also the title sponsors of rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
's Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout cup competition for rugby league clubs organised by the Rugby Football League. Originally it was contested only by British teams but in recent years has been expanded to allow teams from France and Russia to take part....
for a while and the competition was known as the 'Silk Cut Challenge Cup'. Silk Cut also sponsored the successful Jaguar XJR sportscars
Jaguar XJR Sportscars
The Jaguar XJR Sportscars were a series of race cars used by Jaguar-backed teams in both the World Sportscar Championship Group C and the IMSA Camel GTP series between 1984 and 1993.-History:...
that competed in World Sportscar Championship
World Sportscar Championship
The World Sportscar Championship was the world series run for sports car racing by the FIA from 1953 to 1992.The championship evolved from a small collection of the most important sportscar, endurance and road racing events in Europe and North America with dozens of gentleman drivers at the grid,...
and 24 Hours of Le Mans
24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
race.
It is now illegal to advertise tobacco in many countries and the adverts have stopped. In the 1990s Silk Cut was the best selling brand in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, but sales have declined behind cheaper budget brands as tax on tobacco has increased. In an attempt to counteract this, the manufacturers responded in the new millennium by introducing bevelled corners to redesigned regular gauge packaging, and marketing their first 'slim' cigarette in the UK, even though this wasn't the first 'slim' cigarette available in the UK as More, Karelia and Vogue are available in most tobacconists. Capri were available in the UK until the mid 1990s.
Silk Cut is also available in a lower tar version and an ultra low tar version with a tar content of only 0.1 mg. When terms such as 'light' and 'low tar' were made illegal to use in the UK for use of tobacco promotion (for fear that it deluded smokers into thinking such products were safer), some commentators predicted that Silk Cut's name and good brand-recognition as a low-tar product would favourably affect sales of the brand to health conscious consumers. Silk Cut Blue cigarettes contain 0.3mg Nicotine and Tar content is 3 mg. Silk Cut Silver cigarettes contain 0.1mg Nicotine and Tar content is 1 mg. Silk Cut White cigarettes contain 0.01mg Nicotine and Tar content is 0.5 mg. Silk Cut cigarettes are also available in a '100s' range (superking size) and in a menthol variety.
It is a misconception that the tobacco in Silk Cuts contains less nicotine than other cigarette tobacco. The lower nicotine
Nicotine
Nicotine is an alkaloid found in the nightshade family of plants that constitutes approximately 0.6–3.0% of the dry weight of tobacco, with biosynthesis taking place in the roots and accumulation occurring in the leaves...
levels are caused by the design of the filter, which has many more holes than regular strength cigarette filters, to mix the smoke with air.
They remain a popular choice for smokers who want a lighter cigarette